The Northwest Geological Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to geoscience education and providing forums for news and insights on Northwest geology and related topics. The Society is composed of professionals, teachers, students, and enthusiasts. Membership is open to everyone .
Meetings are held on the 2nd Tuesday of the month, October through May, and feature a social hour*, dinner*, and a sponsored talk. Past presentations have featured leading geoscience research, geologic studies, and socio-economic discussions within regional geologic context. These talks are given by academic and government researchers, field professionals, and industry practitioners. Everyone is welcome to attend.
*NOTE: Meetings are currently hosted virtually using the Zoom platform for the continued safety of our members through the COVID pandemic. Zoom meetings feature a virtual social hour prior to the sponsored talk. Many of these talks are recorded, edited, and published for the Society. Future plans for in-person meetings will be directed by local regulations and recommendations. When in-person meetings resume, advance reservations will be required for dining.
By becoming a NWGS member, you gain access to sponsored field trips, NWGS publications, meeting recordings, and discounted rates on meeting dining reservations. Annual dues are posted on our membership page. We offer a discounted rate for student members.
We sponsor a Fall and Spring field trip each year to locales with regional geologic interest. These trips are guided by researchers or professional geologists and are an outstanding opportunity to experience the geology of the Northwest. These trips are provided at reasonable costs to existing members and spaces are limited to a small group on a first-come basis.
NWGS maintains an extensive in-house library of geologic field guidebooks and meeting documents. Our local guidebooks include publications on the geology of the Olympics, Puget Sound region, Cascades, Columbia River, and beyond. We also have guidebooks featuring travel-destinations including Iceland, Scotland, and Hawaii!
The Northwest Geological Society was founded in 1987. We are chartered as a private non-profit organization under applicable state and federal statutes and governed by an elected Board of Directors. Monthly board meetings are open to all members and are a matter of public record.
If you have more questions – see our FAQ or use the contact form.
CURRENT BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Chris Kimmel, President
Christine Kimmel is a Senior Associate Geologist with Landau Associates with over 25 years of experience in the Puget Northwest specializing in remediation projects. She received a BS degree from Oregon State University and is licensed in the State of Washington. Christine has been an active member of the NWGS for many years and the acting President in 2021.
Matthew Porter, President Elect
Matthew is a Licensed Hydrogeologist with experience in drilling, hydrogeologic assessments, and databasing. He received his B.S. in geology at University of Minnesota (2014) and his M.S. in applied geosciences from the University of Washington (2017). He has interests in a wide variety of disciplines and is keen to learn more about the geology throughout Washington and beyond.
Amy Trueba Knudson, Secretary
Amy Trueba Knudson is a Mars geologist and educator. She went to school at Brown University and Arizona State University, earning her Ph.D. in Geological Sciences in 2006. She worked on the Mars rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, along with several Mars orbiters. She taught Geology and Astronomy at Bellevue College and the Seattle Colleges before taking time off to raise her children.
Pamela Osterhout, Treasurer
Pamela is a Pacific Northwest native and holds a masters degree in applied geosciences from the University of Washington. She is an environmental consultant with Floyd|Snider.
Katie Brower, Past-President
Katie is a Washington native and Project Geologist with Nelson Geotechnical Associates with experience in geotechnical assessments and landslide evaluations around the Puget Sound area. She received an Associate of Science Degree in Geology from Everett Community College in 2016 and Bachelors of Science (B.S) in Geology from Western Washington University in 2018. She has been involved actively in the NWGS community since her time in Community College as a student, and served previously as the first-ever Student At-Large Board member for several years. In 2019 she moved on to President-Elect and in 2020 she was the active President.
Maura O’Brien, At-Large Board Members
Maura S O’Brien is a professional geologist/hydrogeologist who has worked in applied research, consulting, education and most recently with the Washington Department of Ecology serving as site manager for investigation and cleanup under the state Model Toxics Control Act. Earlier she worked with geothermal energy development in California, New Mexico and Kagoshima, Japan. For Bucknell University, Pennsylvania, she and her husband traveled extensively in Central and South America then taught Geology and Geography of C & S America.
John LaManna, At-Large Board Members
John LaManna is a retired geologist who has been a member of NWGS for many years. As member of the Board of Directors, he has been the lead fund raiser for the 2018 Geohazards Symposium and the 2019 Student Poster Competition.
John got his MS in geology from Western Washington University. He initially worked for mining companies as an exploration geologist in the western United States and Alaska. Next, he worked for consulting companies in the Puget Sound area on projects that involved contaminated soil, groundwater and sediment. Then he became self-employed and provided geologic consulting services mainly to commercial timber companies in Washington state. John was a licensed geologist in Washington and California.